Music & Culture
Classical Music Posts
In New Song, Black Violin Focuses On The Light As They’re ‘Not Supposed To’ Play Violin
Race and challenging assumptions about race is central to what Black Violin does: Outside of playing for fun or for creative expression, Marcus finds it particularly satisfying to disarm people who don’t expect him to be a violin scholar. “The number-one reason I play violin,” he says, “is because I’m not ‘supposed to.’ ” Continue Reading In New Song, Black Violin Focuses On The Light As They’re ‘Not Supposed To’ Play Violin
Immanuel Wilkins Highlights Struggle And Triumph Of Black Experience In Tiny Desk (Home) Concert
Candles and books rest on a trunk at the bottom right corner of the wide shot. There, too, are special photographs of alto saxophonist Immanuel Wilkins with family in his childhood home in Philadelphia. “One of the brightest things about this pandemic was going home to spend time with my mother, father and grandmother after being on the road for a while,” Wilkins told NPR recently. Continue Reading Immanuel Wilkins Highlights Struggle And Triumph Of Black Experience In Tiny Desk (Home) Concert
Remembering The Legacy Of Maestro Armando Manzanero
We lost Armando Manzanero this past December in Mexico City to COVID-19 complications at the age of 85. This week, we present our tribute for Valentine’s Day, a day when his profound words can help us express the inexpressible. Continue Reading Remembering The Legacy Of Maestro Armando Manzanero
Why A Musician Breathed New Life Into A 17,000-Year-Old Conch Shell Horn
A horn made from a conch shell over 17,000 years ago has blasted out musical notes for the first time in millennia. Archaeologists originally found the seashell in 1931, in a French cave that contains prehistoric wall paintings. They speculated that the cave’s past occupants had used the shell as a ceremonial cup for shared drinks, and that a hole in its tip was just accidental damage. Continue Reading Why A Musician Breathed New Life Into A 17,000-Year-Old Conch Shell Horn
Remembering Flory Jagoda, Who Preserved Sephardic Jewish Music And Language
Singer, songwriter, guitarist and accordionist Flory Jagoda worked hard to preserve the music and language she inherited from her Sephardic Jewish ancestors in her adopted American home. Named a National Heritage Fellow by the National Endowment for the Arts in 2002, she died on Jan. 29 at age 97 in Alexandria, Va. at a long-term memory care facility, according to an obituary placed by her family. Continue Reading Remembering Flory Jagoda, Who Preserved Sephardic Jewish Music And Language
Chick Corea, Jazz Fusion Pioneer, Has Died Of Cancer At 79
The keyboardist, composer and bandleader Chick Corea — one of the most revered figures in contemporary jazz, but whose work spanned fusion to classical — died on Feb. 9 at age 79. Continue Reading Chick Corea, Jazz Fusion Pioneer, Has Died Of Cancer At 79
